Give Me A Sign
by Teliko. x3
Summary: Brennan and Booth are graduating. Will they remain? Will she fall apart? Will he leave her forever in the dark?


**Give Me A Sign**

**Rating: It's good.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own them.**

**Summary: Forever and ever, the stars will remain. I'm falling apart. Leave me here forever in the dark.**

**A/N: So this is AU, of course, but nothing is wrong with that. This is dedicated to Julia and Rachel, my awesome family. Without them, none of this would be possible. And I would like to announce, 19 days left until I graduate! Whoo! LOL. I hope you guys enjoy this.**

* * *

The weather was nice, finally. It was a beautiful day outside with blue skies, white clouds, a bright sun, and a nice breeze. Five friends sat on a spread out blanket under one of the park's many trees. The long branches did a good job of blocking the intense rays of the sun, but as they swayed, allowed a few slivers of light through.

Cam sat with her legs crossed and face turned up towards the sun, enjoying the warm weather. It had been a week since the five of them had done anything fun together and she was enjoying every minute of it; laughing at Booth, arguing with Hodgins, gossiping with Angela, and catching up with Brennan.

Hodgins held a Frisbee in his hands, trying to encourage his friends to play another round with him. The group had grown tired of it earlier and had decided to rest a while under the tree. The second he laid eyes on an unfamiliar insect trying to crawl onto the blanket, his interest had jumped to bugs now.

Angela had her camera hanging around her neck, taking pictures every now and then of her friends. She had wandered off a few times to get random, close-up shots of flowers and plants, some candids of children swinging on the playground, and even some pictures of the bugs that Hodgins had captured.

Seely Booth was lying on the blanket next to his best friend, Temperance Brennan. He was focused on taking a light nap before going into another round of extreme frisbee with Hodgins. He opened an eye every now and then to steal a glance at Brennan, watching her tuck her loose bangs behind her ears as she studied. He laughed at the thought.

The five of them had planned a day at the park to have fun, but Brennan insisted she study for her Physics test that was the following day. It was never enough to just have fun for her; before fun, there had to be work.

When he couldn't take the thought of her studying any more than she had that morning, he pulled himself up and grabbed her Physics book.

"Hey," she protested. "I have a test tomorrow."

"Take a break. You've been studying for the past hour."

"Well... I like to be thorough."

"I'm not giving the book back until you've had at least an hour of fun to compensate for the torture you've been putting yourself through."

"I like Physics," she said defensively.

"Walk with me," he said, tossing her book towards Hodgins and holding out a hand for her to take. She slipped her hand into his slowly and allowed him to pull her off of the blanket.

"Hey! What about frisbee," Hodgins called out as the two walked toward the river that wrapped around the entire park. Booth waved him off and walked with his hand on the small of Brennan's back.

"Do you realize that we only have 23 days left of high school?"

"I was quite aware of that. I believe all of the seniors are aware of that, actually."

"It's just crazy, though! 23 days? That's less than a month, Bones."

"Don't call me Bones."

"What are you going to do over the summer," he asked, quickly shying from the thought of graduation. Truth was... he was nervous. He still had no idea what he wanted to do with his life or if he would even do well in college, much less, earn a degree. Maybe joining the army was the way to go after all, just like his father had tried to persuade him a few nights ago.

"Interning," she answered immediately. He smiled, knowing just how excited she was about her new summer internship. The girl had big dreams and she was doing everything and more to make them come true. He could listen to her talk about bones, people, anthropology, human behavior- anything, for hours. How a person could be excited by bones? He didn't know, but she was so adorable, it didn't matter.

They made it to the river and the two sat down on the warm grass, letting their bare feet dip into the warm water. She laughed as a tiny fish swam by and tickled her left foot, then splashed a little. Their shoulders were pressed together by how close they were sitting, but neither of them seemed to notice or really mind. Booth had to squint his eyes to see across the river, into the backyard of a resident of the city. There were two younger children, one boy and one girl, playing in the back yard.

"So... what does graduating mean for us," he asked softly, taking his eyes off of the younger children for a few seconds to look at his best friend. Her head was tilted back, her face illuminated by the bright sunlight and her soft hair flowing in the gentle breeze.

"I don't understand," she murmured. "We'll still be friends, if that's what you mean," she added with closed eyes.

"Well... you'll be super busy with... college stuff, I'm sure."

"And you won't?"

"Bones, I don't know if I'm even going to college."

"Of course you're going. You're too smart not to go." The answer seemed to come out of her mouth without a second thought. She knew the potential her friend had. If he put his mind to it, he could accomplish anything. If Seely Booth wanted to be a brain surgeon, he could be the best brain surgeon that ever walked the face of the planet. If he wanted to become a male stripper, he'd be raking in hundreds of dollars a night. His lack of confidence in himself upset her grately. "What does Rebecca think of all this?"

"She really hasn't said anything about it."

"She doesn't care," Brennan concluded in disgust. "If she were really looking out for your well-being, she'd be encouraging you to go to college. Instead, she's too busy getting spray-on tans and-"

"Whoa, whoa. Where's all this coming from," he asked, trying to hid his grin. He knew Brennan didn't like his girlfriend, Rebecca. The one thing he didn't know for sure though was whether Brennan's hate erupted from jealousy or whether she just thought Rebecca was really a bad person.

"If I offended you, I apologize, but I'm speaking my mind and my mind concludes that she's not right for you."

"And when did you become an expert on relationships," he questioned her with a small smile, squinting against the bright sunlight.

"I'm just rationalizing here, Booth. Look at the facts. You're a guy who likes to be outdoors, you're athletic, you're intelligent when it comes to common sense-"

"Bones." He said her name as if he were whining. Throughout his entire relationship with Rebecca, there were numerous occasions where his friends would pester and bug him about his girlfriend. Everyone knew the two weren't good together. Everyone knew that he belonged with Temperance Brennan- everyone except Seely Booth and Temperance Brennan. "If you don't like her, just say so."

Brennan shrugged her shoulders and tilted her head.

"Fine. I don't like her."

"See? Wasn't that easy," he asked with a smile. She let her head fall sideways so she could look at him with a skeptical expression.

"You're not angry that I disapprove of your girlfriend?"

"Everybody disapproves of her, you're not the only one. Trust me." She was silent for a while, then nodded.

"Okay."

"Okay what?"

"Okay. I trust you." He smiled and nudged her shoulder with his. Together, they continued watching the two children play from across the river in a comfortable silence. The water gently moved further down the river as the wind picked up and slowed down. The tree tops swayed above them gracefully, as did the large plants that surrounded them near the river.

Brennan allowed her eyes to close again, heightening her other senses. She could feel the sunlight bounce off of her face and knew she'd be red in the cheeks by the end of the day. The wind tickled her hair as it blew the loose strands around. She could even feel the current of the water her feet were in.

"So you're not afraid?" His question broke their silence. She didn't open her eyes.

"I, unlike a vast majority of our graduating class, am prepared. College does not scare me," she answered softly, letting her head tilt more and lean against his shoulder.

"What about the fact that you may never see any of these people for the rest of your life?"

"Considering that I plan on staying in the surrounding area after college, the fact turns more into a statistic." He laughed and fought the urge to press a kiss to the top of her head.

"Of course it does."

Angela had invaded their space unnoticed, with her camera aimed and ready to take clear shots of the couple sitting together on the river's edge. A few snaps later and her work was done.

She smiled.

--

On the last full day of school for the seniors, the group had decided to ditch class and sit out in the courtyard on the side of the school. To hide themselves from roaming teachers and vice-principals, they sat behind a large oak tree that blocked nearly all of them.

It was another gorgeous day outside and the whole group opted for wearing shorts and light shirts. A basket of food sat in the middle of everyone, some things opened and some things still in the basket. Booth polished off a bottle of water and tossed it into a near trashcan.

"Angela, these cupcakes are amazing," Cam said with a mouth full of strawberry cupcake.

"Thank you," she said softly, picking up the tray that held the batch of cupcakes. She extended it towards Booth and Brennan. "You guys want one? They're really good," she bribed with a sweet smile and batted eyelashes.

"I would love one. Thank you, Angela," Booth said as he accepted one cupcake from the tray. "Bones. Grab a cupcake."

"I rather not have sugar this early in the morning," she explained, but politely smiled at her friend. Booth shook his head and grabbed a cupcake from the tray, set it down, and shoved the sweet treat into his best friend's face.

"Eat it."

"Booth, stop it," she squealed and squirmed to avoid getting pink frosting in her hair. After a never ending battle back and forth between the two friends, Brennan ended up eating the cupcake and Booth leaned back in defeat.

"Those twenty somewhat days seemed to take forever, but now it seems like it all just flew by," Booth thought out loud. Brennan was wiping the frosting from the corner of her mouth and throwing away the wrapper when this was said.

"Easy for you to say," Hodgins said. "We still have another year left of this Detentional Center they call a high school."

"Can we not talk about school today," Angela pleaded. "It's already bad enough the three of you are leaving. Let's make today fun, not depressing."

"Then I say we cloud watch," Booth proposed. Brennan stared at her four friends in confusion as they got up from their places and walked further into the courtyard where it was just grass. "Come on, Bones. The grass is fine!" Everyone laughed and took their places next to each other. Brennan got up slowly and followed them, mocking their positions and lying in the itchy grass next to Booth.

Hodgins went first and pointed at the cloud directly above him.

"Looks like a Goliath beetle." Angela rolled her eyes jokingly and pointed to her cloud.

"Reminds me of The Starry Night painted by Vincent van Gogh."

"How can that resemble a painting," Hodgins protested.

"Imagination, Jack," Angela barked back. Cam laughed and took her turn.

"That one nearly looks like a cop car," she said absentmindedly, amazed by her cloud of her choice. Booth searched the sky for his cloud and smiled when he discovered it.

"Mine looks like an AK-47." By now, Brennan had gathered the concept of the game and took her turn searching the clouds.

"Ilium."

When no one else replied to her cloud formation, she leaned up on her elbows and gave her four friends a skeptical look.

"The rest of you had clouds that fit your personalities and interests. Why would I be any exception in this game?"

Before any of the rest could get a word out, the lunch bell rang and students began pouring out of the building in every direction. It took a few seconds until everyone had made it into the courtyard and for Rebecca to spot Booth lying next to Brennan in the grass. She walked over swiftly all while trying to hide her anger. She had only waited for him all morning so he could walk her to class and he never showed up at her locker after first period.

"Seely," she hissed slowly. "Where were you this morning?"

"I was late, honey. I'm sorry." Brennan nearly cringed at the pet name. "We were all late, actually," he threw in, something Brennan also cringed at. Of course Rebecca wasn't super intelligent, but she wasn't stupid enough to believe that excuse. Instead of a reply, he got a cold stare. Slowly, he stood from the ground and gave Brennan a sad smile. "Sorry, guys. I'll see you later?" Everyone nodded, except Brennan.

"He knows about the pool party," Angela asked Hodgins, who nodded in return. After confirming Booth's invite, she moved onto Cam. Cam accepted the invitation and promised on showing up that night for the party.

Brennan had her eyes fixed on the couple standing across the courtyard. She watched as the tanned blonde leaned and hugged against Booth. The two were hanging around the popular kids of the school, something Brennan was used to seeing since Booth was a well liked guy. She also knew that Booth never really liked being around those types of people, which only confused Brennan. If he didn't like those types of people, why did he allow Rebecca to drag him into the group every day at lunch.

There was a sudden wave of anger that passed over Brennan as she watched her best friend fake smiles left and right. For the past two years, she had watched this Rebecca girl take Booth away every day for lunch. What did Booth see in her anyway? She wasn't good in math and she hated the outdoors, but the girl could argue. That was one thing Brennan had to give her credit for. When Rebecca wanted something, she'd fight and argue until she got it.

"Sweetie. Talk to me."

Brennan jumped a little upon hearing her friend's voice. Angela seemed to appear out of no where.

"I'm sorry. What did you say?" Angela sat back and watched her friend for a couple of seconds.

"I said, Hodgins is having a pool party tonight in honor of you, Cam, and Booth."

"I'll see if I can make it." Angela's face fell into confusion.

"What do you mean you'll see if you can make it? You have to come!" Brennan turned her head away from Angela and looked at Booth. She bit her bottom lip when Booth felt her stare and turned his head, looking directly at her. She would have to go to this party if she wanted to see Booth one last time... without Rebecca.

–

The lights were all strung up and the tables in the back were pushed together to accommodate all the food. There were dozens of ice chests pushed against the fence holding a variety of drinks. The hot tub was on and the music was blasting. Numerous people from the graduating class were already there. Cam had even showed up early. The only two that were left were Booth and Brennan.

After one phone call, Hodgins had confirmed that Booth was now on his way. When it came to Brennan, Hodgins handed the phone to Angela and smiled sweetly, than stripped off his shirt and ran for the pool.

A few miles away, Booth shuffled around in his bedroom and looked for his swimming trunks. He slipped on the long, black shorts and grabbed a white shirt. On his way out, he slipped on his shoes and grabbed his keys. His bedroom door slammed shut and the framed picture of Rebecca fell face down. After yelling out to his parents that he'd be back later, he slipped out the front door and headed in the opposite direction of Hodgin's house.

Brennan was sitting on her bed, staring at the bikini that was hanging up in front of her. She had nearly left the house to go to the pool party, but something was stopping her from leaving. A book of the human anatomy was opened on the bed, her interest in the human body long forgotten. She sighed, wondering if Booth had arrived at the party yet. They were probably having the time of their lives without her, which encouraged her to stay home and out of their way.

There was a knock coming from her window. She narrowed her eyes and crawled over her bed to reach the window. She pushed back the curtains, lifted up the blinds, and pushed open the glass window. She peaked her head out and what she saw brought a smile to her face.

Booth.

He had two beach towels draped over his left arm and a snorkel with glasses hanging from the other. He was sporting the world's biggest smile. She sighed and held up a finger, telling him to wait a couple of minutes.

She quickly ducked back through the window and stripped off her clothes. She changed into her bikini in record time and found light clothes to put over it. Her heart was racing, knowing she couldn't wake up her parents at this time of night to announce she was going to a pool party. She smiled to herself as she tied her hair back and grabbed a pair of shoes.

She appeared at the window again and threw her shoes down to land at Booth's feet. He smiled and cheered silently in celebration when he realized she was coming down to meet him. He threw the towels, the glasses, and her shoes in the back of his truck and walked closer to the house to make sure she wouldn't fall from the window.

Slowly, she slipped out of her two-story window and climbed down the vine wall, using it as a ladder. Halfway down, she heard a soft whistle and looked over her shoulder to see Booth quickly looking away from her backside. She opened her mouth, but closed it just as fast when she realized she had to be extremely quiet.

"Jump," he whispered loudly. "I'll catch you." She realized just how far away she was from the ground and hesitated at the jump. She knew she would be forced to jump anyway, seeing as the vine wall was coming up short. She had no other choice.

–

"_Everybody disapproves of her, you're not the only one. Trust me." She was silent for a while, then nodded._

"Okay."

"Okay what?"

"Okay. I trust you."

–

She held up her hand with three fingers up. Slowly, she counted down and made herself relax. She trusted him. She turned and faced her best friend, her back now pressing against the metal vine wall. She gripped the metal one last time before pushing off of it and flinging herself forward. Her heart was racing and it felt as if her stomach had fallen right to the bottom of her body. It was hard to breath, but it was over just as soon as it had started.

When she opened her eyes, she was safely wrapped up in Seely Booth's arms.

"Ready to get your party on?"

"I don't know what that means," she complained softly, squirming and laughing in his arms as he walked back to his truck and placed her in the passenger seat.

It only took them a few minutes to drive back to Hodgin's house. When they walked into the backyard, everyone seemed to be in the pool or at the refreshment table. Booth wasted no time by stripping off his shirt, kicking off his shoes, and reaching for Brennan. She tried to squirm out of his grasp as he walked closer to the pool.

"What are you doing," she asked loudly, but with a smile on her face.

"We're going swimming. What's it look like?" She managed to get out of her tank top before Booth fell into the deep end with her wrapped in his arms. When she felt herself go under the warm water, she opened her eyes and saw Booth staring back with a grin. She reached out for him under the water, her hand coming to rest upon his chest. They both remained under the water, simply staring at each other until the need for air became a problem.

When they came to the surface, more of their friends were jumping into the pool. Brennan was an exceptionally good swimmer, but she always seemed to panic in deep water. As her friends jumped in left and right, she clung to Booth who moved to a secluded corner of the pool.

Angela walked around to that end, sat on the edge of the pool, and handed her two friends drinks.

"Thanks for kidnapping her, Booth," Angela said over the splashing a music. She took a sip of her drink and winked at him.

"Well she didn't fight too much, so it wasn't that bad," he joked back. One arm rested over Brennan's shoulders while the other hand held his plastic cup. "How long you think this party will last?"

"Well it's Friday night, so at least until two... but you guys can stay as long as you want!"

Bones laughed. As if that were possible. It was one of the reasons she really didn't want to come in the first place. She knew she'd have so much fun that by the time the end of the night came, she'd plead and beg Booth not to take her back home.

She allowed herself to relax in her friend's arms, sipped on her beer, and closed her eyes. She was content to sit in the pool and listen to Booth's voice all night. She could feel his chest vibrate every time he talked and she loved the feeling of her back pressed against it.

After an hour of socializing in the pool and playing chicken with some other kids, Booth climbed out o the pool and helped his Brennan out too. He stood around for a few seconds, letting himself dry off before he grabbed her hand and walked for the big oak tree in Hodgin's backyard.

"Where are we going?"

"Swing. We need a break from the pool. We're turning into prunes."

"Prunes are fruit," she stated, unaware of the metaphor. He chuckled and swung her around to face the rope swing. It was an old swing, something Hodgin's dad had built when they were all kids. A piece of wood served as the seat and two thick pieces of rope looped around to serve as the handles.

She climbed onto the seat and he took his position as her pusher.

"Still nervous about graduation," she asked him.

"Not as much now... but a little, yeah."

"I wish you would reconsider college," she whispered.

"College is still an option. I haven't completely turned it down, yet."

"You will," she stated sadly, as if she were predicting the future.

"You don't know that. I don't even know that. Who knows? We may have a class together in the fall." Upon hearing his attempt to satisfy her, she grew silent. She knew he was just telling her things she wanted to hear; things that were supposed to make her believe he was really thinking about college.

"Why didn't Rebecca come," she asked, trying to change the subject.

"I didn't really tell her about it," he admitted, trying to smother a grin. Brennan laughed and shook her head.

"She'll kill you if she finds out she wasn't invited... and that I was here with you."

"Do you really think she'd do that?"

"Well, she may not kill you... she'll just start throwing things at you until she breaks a nail." He laughed at this and pushed her one last time before carefully moving in front of her. Her eyes grew wide and she laughed as he held his arms out to catch the two pieces of rope, to stop her from swinging.

She jerked back a little as her swing came to a complete stop. He was standing in between her thighs, face to face. The air seemed to grow heavy between them and he shook his head, still smiling.

"Why can't you just admit it?"

"Admit what? That I don't like Rebecca? I've already done that." He shook his head again, leaning closer so his lips were barely touching hers.

"That you wish you were in her place."

Carefully, he caught her lips in a sweet, innocent kiss. Her eyes closed and she didn't fight back. She could feel the swing shake, realizing that he was gripping the ropes on either side of her head tightly. The kiss sent a shock down her spine, causing tiny bumps to rise in her arms. She told herself it was the temperature change. The kiss last a few seconds, just their lips locked in a soft kiss.

She pushed back against his chest and laughed softly as she swung back.

"I don't want to be a cheerleader, but thanks anyway." She swung into his arms, her thighs going around his hips again. He caught the ropes once more, their lips meeting in another kiss. His hands went to her waist and he picked her up from the swing. She wrapped her arms around his neck and allowed him to pick her up. Slowly, her feet hit the ground and the kiss was over. "This still doesn't change anything," she whispered against his chest.

He looked up into the sky, not a cloud in sigh. Every star was shining.

"You'll go back home, back to Rebecca. You won't tell her we kissed... twice. I won't tell Angela we kissed twice. We'll graduate in 23 days and we'll still be friends. Nothing will change." He sighed and looked down.

"How do you know," he asked softly, his hold on her loosening.

"We do what we know how to do best and for us, it's pretending." By now, his arms were next to his sides. "I'm sorry," she whispered.

They walked back to the pool together. Hand in hand.

–

They were standing next to each other; Booth in a dark blue gown and Brennan in a white. Their caps were on and their tassels were straight. Even with four inch heels, she was still shorter than him. All the times she had laughed at Booth's nervousness, she was mentally kicking herself for it now. Her palms her sweating and she couldn't seem to stand still.

"You nervous yet," he whispered. She laughed nervously, trying to play it off but failing miserably.

The valedictorian crossed the stage and took the microphone, beginning the speech that would start the ceremony. The speech seemed to last forever, but Brennan knew it could have only lasted five minutes at the most. When the speech was finally completed, people of importance were named, and finally, the students were being called up to receive their diplomas.

They were on the second row. When half of the row in front of them had gone up and came back down, she started to get nervous once more. Booth looked sideways and finally took her hand in his.

He squeezed her hand. She calmed down.

"It's time," he whispered. She smiled and nodded. Reluctantly, she let go of his hand and walked in a single-filed line to the stage. Her heart seemed to be pounding against her chest, making it harder to breathe and causing her to grow dizzy. She grabbed his hand one last time, a sign of reassurance. He squeezed softly, letting her know that she could do this.

"Seely Booth," the principal called. It all seemed to happen so fast now. Before she knew it, her best friend was walking across the stage and shaking hands with the man who served as their principal for the past four years. Flashes went off, cameras snapped, and the rest of their classmates clapped.

"Temeprance Brennan." Before she took her first step onto the stage, she saw Booth look back and smile. He gave her a thumbs-up and returned to his seat. She took her turn walking across the stage, her legs feeling like jell-o. After having her diploma placed in her hands, with her numerous Advanced Placement seals pressed onto the front, she forced a smile for the camera and immediately searched the crowd for Booth.

As she stepped off the stage, she caught him clapping with his eyes locked onto hers.

The rest of the ceremony seemed to fly by, since they had gotten the moment of suspense over. When the class was announced and the hats were tossed into the air, the families broke away from their seats and blended in with the graduates.

In the act, she lost Booth in a crowd of families. Her own parents found her and congratulated her, took pictures, and exchanged hugs. Cam had managed to squeeze her way through the crowd and hugged her friend.

"I lost Booth," she told Cam, nervousness in her voice.

"I'm sure he's around here somewhere with his family," Cam reassured. As Cam finished her statement, Brennan caught him in the corner of her eye.

He was standing opposite of her, his mother and father pestering him for pictures. His younger brother was there, too. She smiled, relieved that she had found him, but when she saw another white gown in the picture, her smile faded. Rebecca had wedged herself through the crowd to get to him before anyone else.

She was right. Things wouldn't change.

"So what now, Tempe? Celebrate? Dinner? Movies?" She looked back at her parents, who had proposed all of the above. She gently took off her cap and shook her head.

"Can we just go home?" Her two parents exchanged looks and Cam narrowed her eyes.

On the other side of the gym, Booth had his arm wrapped around Rebecca, posing for the hundredth picture his mom had taken that night. He was so overwhelmed, so unfocused, that he couldn't find Brennan.

After spotting Hodgins and Angela in the crowd, he broke away from his family and Rebecca. He called to his two friends and they both turned their heads.

"You guys seen Brennan anywhere?" Angela shook her head and Hodgins shrugged. Cam appeared next to Angela and smiled at Booth.

"Congrats."

"Thanks." He smiled and gave her a hug, then went back to his search. "Seen Brennan anywhere?" Cam's smile faded and she looked around the group for assurance.

"She went home," she explained slowly.

"What?" Cam nodded. "You know whats weird, and I feel stupid that I just realized this now, but... why didn't she graduate first?" The group looked at him and then sighed. "I mean, wasn't she valedictorian? They always graduate first."

"Booth," Angela calmed him down gently. "She requested to graduate with the on-level students." Silence fell upon the four.

"Why would she do that," he asked with a disappointed expression. "She worked so hard."

"She did it... for you."

Booth turned, looked over his shoulder, and saw a white gown walking out of the door. Her hair was curled and bouncing with every step she took.

He turned around and looked back at his friends, his mouth open.

She was right.

Nothing would change.

* * *

**A/N: So... how was it? Sorry for any grammar mistakes or anything. :D**


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